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Published 19:03 IST, February 11th 2020

LeBron James reveals that his emotional Kobe Bryant tribute was not planned

On Friday night (Saturday morning IST), LeBron James ended up recreating Kobe Bryant's dunk from 19 years ago. However, LeBron's dunk was not intentional.

Reported by: Devika Pawar
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On Friday night (Saturday morning IST), LeBron James ended up recreating Kobe Bryant's dunk from 19 years ago. Though the Lakers lost the game, LeBron James' reverse style dunk was the highlight of the game. In a recent interview, LeBron James revealed that his dunk was not planned. 

Also read | Kobe Bryant tribute: LeBron James recreates Lakers legend Kobe Bryant's classic dunk: Watch

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Kobe Bryant tribute: LeBron James' recreation of Kobe Bryant's dunk was not intentional

The dunk by LeBron James was a double-clutch reverse dunk. It was made after an outlet pass from Avery Bradley. It looked like an identical copy of Kobe Bryant's dunk on November 2001 against the Sacramento Kings. However, LeBron James stated that the shot was not at all planned. In an ESPN interview, he referred to the movie The 6th Man. He believes that Bryant came to him and gave him that dunk. The movie James mentioned was released in 1997 and revolved around basketball. In the movie, two brothers play basketball together. However, one brother dies of a heart attack. After his death, his ghost returns to help his brother play the game. 

Also read | Kobe Bryant tribute: Lakers fan creates Black Mamba design on his Lamborghini

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Kobe Bryant tribute: LeBron James dunk identical to Kobe Bryant's

Also read | Kobe Bryant tribute: LeBron James reveals reason behind choosing Gianna’s jersey number over Kobe Bryant’s

Kobe Bryant death: Vanessa Bryant reveals that Kobe and Gianna Bryant's memorial service will be held on February 24, 2020

The memorial service will be held at Staples Center, the home of Los Angeles Lakers, a team he played with for 20 years. Twenty four will represent Kobe Bryant's jersey number, while 2 will represent Gianna Bryant's high school jersey number. In her post, Vanessa Bryant stated that more details about the funeral would be added later.

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Also read | Kobe Bryant death: Vanessa Bryant Instagram post about Kobe Bryant and their relationship

19:03 IST, February 11th 2020